Right under your noses, the FIFA Club World Cup began today in Japan, with Sanfrecce Hiroshima‘s Toshihiro Aoyama making sure the tournament’s start was a good one.

What’s Japanese for golazo?

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6syqkRDUD4k]

Sanfrecce went on to beat Auckland City (Oceania’s champions) 1-0 to advance to the quarterfinals … for those that care.

Unfortunately, there aren’t many around that do. I’m certainly not one to trumpet the need to make this tournament more important (<sarcasm>because if there’s one thing the world needs, it’s a few more important tournaments</sarcasm>), but if you ignore your internal pining to find competitive significance in everything from your grocery store line choice to an early hour soccer match in Hiroshima, this event can be a minor spectacle.

Teams who would never otherwise face each other meet with some loose cache to complement minor bragging rights, and every once in a while you get something like last year: Neymar meeting (and his Santos side getting thrashed by) Barcelona.

This year’s tournament carries slightly more intrigue since Chelsea, UEFA’s representative, isn’t that good. Where Europe’s champion is always considered a strong favorite, the Blues’ vulnerability opens the door for an upset, presumably from CONMEBOL’s representatives, Sao Paulo’s Corinthians (who qualified by winning Copa Libertadores for the first time in the club’s 112-year history).

Those two teams are passed into the semifinals, one round ahead of three teams capable of an upset (though perhaps not two). CONCACAF is represented by Monterrey, returning to the competition for a second straight season. They’re coming off a disappointing Apertura in Mexico. AFC (Asia) sends South Korea’s Ulsan Hyundai, who beat Saudi Arabia’s Al-Ahli to snare a spot, while Egypt’s Al-Alhy completed a remarkable rebound from February tragedy to claim CAF’s (Africa’s) spot.

After today’s opener, the competition takes a small break until Sunday when Sanfrecce faces Al-Alhy and Ulsan takes on Monterrey.

And one of the beautiful parts of this competition: Nobody knows who should win those games!

With the first section labelled “basically, free money” for the picks I think are dead certs. The section labelled “don’t touch this” means if you’re betting I advise you to stay clear, while the “so you’re telling me there’s a chance” section are the longshots. If it is better odds you are after, those are the picks to go for.

Watford host Everton on Saturday (7:30 a.m. ET live NBCSN and online via NBC Sports.com) at Vicarage Road to kick things off with both teams out of form and desperate for a win.

Then Arsenal welcome Stoke City to the Emirates Stadium (10 a.m. ET live NBCSN andonline via NBC Sports.com) as Arsene Wenger‘s side look to stretch their unbeaten run to 14 games in the Premier League against a resurgent Potters outfit.

As the same time struggling Swansea City and Sunderland clash (10 a.m. ET live CNBC and online via NBC Sports.com) in a massive relegation battle at the Liberty Stadium. Can Bob Bradley get a big win?

Rounding things off on Saturday we have a big game for two teams in contrasting situations as Leicester City host Manchester City (12:30 p.m. ET live NBC and online via NBC Sports.com) at the King Power Stadium with Claudio Ranieri‘s side in a relegation battle. As for Pep Guardiola and City, they haven’t had it all their own way recently but are just four points off top spot.

On Sunday league-leader Chelsea host West Brom (7 a.m. ET live NBCSN and online via NBC Sports.com) with Antonio Conte‘s boys aiming to make it eight-straight wins in the Premier League but the in-form Baggies stand in the way. Then Manchester United and Tottenham collide at Old Trafford (9:15 a.m. ET live on NBCSN and online via NBC Sports.com) in one of the games of the weekend as both teams still harbor title aspirations but look more likely to simply challenge for the top four this season.

To round Week 15 off Liverpool welcome struggling West Ham to Anfield (11:30 a.m. ET live NBCSN and online via NBC Sports.com) with Jurgen Klopp‘s men aiming to get over their shocking defeat at Bournemouth, while Slaven Bilic‘s Hammers will take anything they can get from this trip.

If you’re looking for full-event replays of Premier League games, you can find them here. They are available soon after the final whistle, but rights limit us to a certain number each week. Looking for game highlights? Try this. Here’s your full TV schedule for the coming days. Enjoy.